Dry closet



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2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

atented Mar. 81, 1885.

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I. D. SMEAD.

DRY CLOSET, 5w.

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N. PETERS. wmv-Lummphw. wnhmgm uc.

that shown in Fig. l.

lUNrTni) STAT-ns PATENT OFFICE ISAAC D SMEr-XD, OF TOLEDO, OHIO.

DRY CLOSET, C.

SPECIRICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 314,884, dated March31,1885.

Application tiled August 13, 1884.

.T0 all whom it may concern,.-

Be it known that I, Isaac D. SMEAD, of Toledo, in the county of Lucasand 'State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inDry Closets, Src., of which the followingis a specitication.

My invention relates to dry closets forschool and other buildings; andthe invention consists in so arranging the closets that the t'oul orWarm air which is taken out of the rooms for ventilation shall be madeto pass through the vault or duct which receives the fecal deposits, andfrom thence enter the Ventilatingshaft and be conducted to the outer airabove the building, all as hereinafter more fully set forth.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is atransversevertical section ofa portion of a building with my invention applied thereto. Fig. 2 is avertical section on the line x x of Fig. l, the view being taken atright angles to Fig. Sis a vertical section on the line y y ot Fig. 4,showing a series of closets with the foul-air room, vault, andventilating-shaftyaud Fig. 4t is a transverse horizontal section ofthesame on theline z z of Fig. 3, with the addition of the heatingapparatus.

As is well known one of the most difficult problems of the day, in asanitary point of view, is the proper arrangement of closets or priviesfor use in or in connection with public buildings, especiallyschool-buildings, where large numbers of children or persons congregate,and more especially in those cases wh ere there is notan abundantwater-supply.

The advantages or superiority of dry closets, either with or without theuse of dry earth, have of late been more fully recognized; but hithertono system hasbeen devised, so far as I am aware, by which they could bemade practically available for general use in public buildings, and nonein which the air drawn from the rooms ofthe building in ventilating thesame has been utilized for that purpose.

The object of my present invention,therefore, is to so construct andarrange the closets that the warm foul air drawn from the rooms shallpass through the vault of the closets, and by being brought in contactwith the fecal de- (No model.)

posits desiccate or dry the same, at the same time taking up andconveying away all offensive odors, &c. A

It is obvious from the nature ot' my invention that the specialarrangement ot' the parts will have to be varied more or less to adaptit to the great variety ot' buildings; but the accompanying drawingswill illustrate the prin ciple so clearly that with the followingdescription architects and others will readily understand the nature ofmy invention Iand how to apply the same.

In Fig. l I have shown ascction of a building which is Ventilated bydrawing the foul air from the rooms through registers a or any suitableopenings arranged at the sides of the room near the door, preferably inthe baseboard, these openings communicating with the space under theiioor c in a wellknown manner.

The floor-boards, instead of being nailed to the joists e, as is usual,are secured to strips d, placed at right angles to the joists, as shownin the several figures', so that the air which enters the registers awill have a free space in which to move underneath the entire floor, andthus be free to be drawn ofi" at either side and at any point wheredesired. This method of Ventilating underneath the door is old and wellknown. 1t is not absolutely necessary to my invention, as the air may betaken out'of the room above the tloor and at other points; but I preferthis plan as most convenient for my present purpose, as it enables oneto locate the foul-air shafts or ducts which convey the air fromtherooms at either side of the room, as may best suit his convenience inother respects. Another reason why I prefer this plan is that it causesthe fresh warm air as it enters the room to diffuse itself evenly acrossthe entire room7 thus warming all parts ofthe room with a degree ofuniformity not otherwise attainable, and also because by taking the foulair out underneath the door the latter is kept warm, thus preventingcold feet, which is a matter of great importance, especially in the caseof school-children, who often enter with their shoes saturated by rainor snow, and are compelled to sit for hours without changing them, theevil results of which are too well known to require specifying.

IOO

Foul-air ducts B, as represented in Fig. l, are arranged on whicheverside of the various rooms may be most convenient to receive the air fromthe rooms and conduct it to a foulair or gathering room, C, located atthe base of the building, as shown in Figs. l, 2, 3, and 4. Thesefoul-air ducts B may be constructed so that each one may receive the airfrom several rooms; or there may be a separate duct for each separateroom, as is found most practicable. I prefer, however, that each room beprovided with a separate duct, so as to prevent the possibility of thefoul air taken from one room entering another room by accident orotherwise. In constructing a new building these ducts B should be builtin the walls or partitions, so as not to occupy the space in the rooms;but in case of old buildings they may be placed alongside of the walls,on the sides, or in the corners of the rooms, where most convenient, andwhere they will afford the least obstruction. All these foul-air ductsB, wherever located or whatever their num- .most cases.

ber, are connected by intermediate ducts, channels, or pipes with afoul-air or gathering room, O, so as to concentrate the entire volume ofair which is drawn from the rooms or from a series of rooms, accordingto the size of the building and the purposes for which. the building isused.

The building` should be provided with one or more largeVentilating-shafts, E, extending from the basement out above the roof,as shown in Figs; l, 3, and 4, and the closets I, more or less innumber, are so arranged that the vault D underneath them will form aduct or passage connecting the foul-air room C with the vent-shaft E atits base, as shown clearly in Figs. l and 3, so that all the air drawnfrom the rooms shall pass through the vault D of the closets and actupon whatever deposits there may be in said vault.

As represented in Figs. 3 and 4, these closets I may be located in thebasement, and preferably alongside of one of the walls, they beingelevated sufficiently to afford a propersized vault or duct, D,underneath them; or, if preferred, they may be placed on a level withthe door, and the vault be 'sunk below, though the former is the simplermethod in Their seats o will be provided with hinged covers n, whichshould be arranged to be self-closing, so as to prevent their beingleftopen accidentally. If the proper draft be secured in the shaft E itwill not be necessary that these covers should fit air-tight, becausethe little air that will be drawn through the orevices into the vaultbelow will simply serve to ventilate the closets and prevent theaccumulation of foul airor disagreeable odors therein.

In order to secure a strong draft in the ventilating-shaft E, I buildthe smoke-line T alongside of it, as represented in Fig. 4, or locate ametallic smoke-pipe within the shaft E, as shown in Fig. 1 and by dottedlines in Fig. 4,

either plan being adopted at will. The smoke and gases which escape fromthe furnace or furnaces F (there being two shown in Fig. 4) will so heatthe shaft E as to insure a good strong draft, thereby drawing a largevolume of air from the various rooms through the vault D, and thence outabove the roof through the shaft E. Where two air-warming furnaces areset in the same air-chamber, their smoke-pipes t t may both be connectedto one larger pipe, h, which latter enters the smoke-stack T, or, asbefore stated, may extend upward within the Ventilating or foul-airshaft E, if preferred. The fresh warm air will be conveyed through ductsH into the rooms, as represented in Fig. l, there being of course asuitable duct or ducts leading from the outer air to the heatingchamberof sufficient capacity to supply a large volume of fresh air. Separatewarm-air ducts EI may be provided for each separate room; or, ifpreferred, onelarger duct may be made to supply two or more rooms in thesame vertical plane.

' In order to insure a positive draft up the shaft E and for use whenthere is little or no heat in the furnaces, I locate a heater of anysuitable kind within the shaft E, as near its top as may be convenient,as indicated at R, Fig. 1, there being provided a door, m, in the sideof the shaft for access to the same. Where gas is used this heater mayconsist of one or more large Argand burners, and where there is no gascoal-oil burners may be substituted. It is not absolutely necessary thatthis heater should be located so near the top, except in those caseswhere there are openings into the stack E at some point above the vaultD; but it should in all cases be located above the highest opening inthe shaft within the building. I prefer, however, not to have anyopening in the Ventilating-shaft except at the bottom, so that by nopossibility can any of the foul air escape from the shaft E inside thebuilding.

While I have shown and described the heating apparatus as consisting offurnaces, it is obvious that any of the known methods of heating may beused so long as the arrangement is such as to draw the air from therooms into and through the vault and out through the exit-shaft, asexplained. So, too,'it is obvious'that any of the known appliances inuse may be availed of to increase the draft in case such should be foundnecessary.

By providing a large heating-surface and large ducts for the admissionand expulsion of the air, not only can the air be introduced in a muchlarger volume than is usual, but also at a much lower temperature thanis the general custom, and thus be in a far better condition forinhaling, and by causing this larger volume of air to pass out throughthe vault the desiccation of the fecal deposits in the vault and theremoval of all foul odors are more thoroughly effected, especially asthe air will leave the rooms at a temperature of not IOO less than ounder ordinary circumstances, or more. The location of the closets mustof course be governed by circumstances; but it is immaterial Where theyare located so long as the ducts are so arranged as to conduct the airfrom the building through the vault, and from thence out into the outeratmosphere at such a point that it will not be wafted back into thebuilding through the doors or Windows.

In carrying out my invention I prefer to make the floor of the vault ofconcrete, cement, asphalt, or otherwise render it waterproof, and alsoto coat theinterior of the walls with a similar material, so as toprevent them or the foundations from becoming saturated or permeatedwith any 0f the liquid contents of the vault or any foul odor or gases,though as a matter of fact I have found by experiment that whateverliquid deposit may naturally be in the vault is so rapidly evaporatedand all odors so quickly and thoroughly taken up and conveyed away withthe passing current of air that even when the deposits were permitted tofall upon the naked earth at thc bottom of the vault no foul odor wasleft.

The fioor of the vault should beinclined toward the bottom of theVentilating-shaft, so that if from any cause there should be sniiicientfluid matter to flow at all, it will iiow toward or into the bottom ofthe Ventilatingshaft, thereby insuring its rapid evaporation and thecarrying out of the building whatever odor there might be eventemporarily.

In case it be necessary to provide a large number of urinals, or wherethe urinals are in constant or frequent use, as in public buildings, aseparate trough or pipe may be arranged Within the vault to receivetheir liquid contents and convey it direct into the sewer, if there beany, or to a drain outside, if there be no sewer. Where there are sewersand a water-supply, the urinals will preferably be connected therewithin the usual manner; but where there are none and the urinals are notused to any great extent, the pipe therefrom may be made to deliver theliquid in the bottom of the shaft, which in that case should be suppliedwith some absorbent material, to be removed at frequent intervals.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that the gist of myinvention consists in so arranging the closets in relation to theexhaust-ducts and Ventilating shaft or shafts as to cause the foul airwhich is drawn from the rooms to pass through the vault which receivesthe fecal deposits and desiccate the same, and at the same time take upand carry off all foul odors. As the airleaves the rooms at atemperature of about G5", it will readily be seen that it is in acondition to rapidly absorb moisture and produce a drying effect uponany matter with which it may be brought in contact. By this method thefecal matter is quickly desiccated and greatly reduced in vol- 'avoidall the serious difficulties or objections which have heretofore existedin reference to closets, especially when located within buildings, theclosets themselves being as free from offensive odors as are theordinary rooms of the building. rlhe advantages of this plan will bereadily seen, especially as by it I am enabled to avoid the use of theordinary cesspools and sewers, which constantly tend to producepoisonous and disagreeable gases and odors, and also dispense withwater-pipes and all their incidental expense and annoyances.

I am aware that various plans have been devised for drawing the air fromrooms through and over the bowls of water-closets and other sewer-pipesor connections, and I do not claim any such; but, on the contrary, myinvention is designed to dispense with the use of waterclosets andsewer-connections, and to substitute therefor a dry closet or closets,in which the fecal deposits shall be desiccated and all odors removed bythe warm air drawn from within the building.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is 1. The combinationand arrangement of one or more ducts for the removal of the foul airfrom a room or rooms of a building, a vault for receiving and retainingthe fecal deposits, connected with said duct or ducts, and a ven`-tilating orexit shaft connected with said vault,

whereby the warm air from within the building is made to desiccate ordry the deposit in the vault and remove all odors therefrom to the outerair, as set forth.

2. The combination, in a building, of a series of foul-air ducts, B, agathering-room, C, a vault, D, anda Ventilating or exit shaft, E, withmeans7 substantially such as described, for creating a draft through thesame, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. A dry closet arranged in relation to the ducts which convey the airfrom the room or rooms in a building and the Ventilating or exit shaft,substantially as shown Vand described, whereby the foul and warm airfrom the room or rooms is made to pass through IIO said dry closet, andthence out through the ventilating-shaft, as and for the purpose Setforth.

ISAAC D. SMEAD. ,Vtnesses:

J. R. KIRKUP,

NV. J. FARRAR.

